I am taking a break from the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon (enjoyed the first one a lot) and I am now listening to The Magicians by Lev Grossman. At the moment, I am only about two hours in but I am enjoying it so far.

I am also listening to Cro-Magnon by Brian Fagan. One of my goals this year is to read/listen to more non-fiction, something I have neglected a bit last year. I used to enjoy reading popular science books a lot, and I think I might be getting into them again. My favorite subjects are natural history and astrophysics and I have some great-looking stuff on my TBR. Cro-Magnon is about the ascent of modern man and the decline of the Neanderthals. So far it is very good.

I recently finished The Galactic Gourmet by James White. It's one of his Sector General novels, and a perfectly fine example of that series. White's one of my favorite sf writers, and always gives you a great story.

I just finished James H. Schmitz's The Witches of Karres, which I remembered fondly from many years ago. It holds up very well, and I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a light-hearted, exciting science fiction romp. Plenty of fun for all.

Wow. Where did you find an audiobook version of The Witches of Karres? It has been one of my favorite books since the 1970s and I reread it every few years. Mostly I get audiobooks from audible or from the Fort Worth library and neither of them have it. Does it have a decent narrator?

Okay, to give something back. It seems like I went through a long drought where I couldn't find any audiobooks that I liked well enough to stick with them to the end. But I have just finished two books in a row.

The one I just finished yesterday was Himmler's War by Robert Conroy. It is one of those 'what if' books. In this case the premise was - what if Hitler had died in an allied bombing in June 1944 and Himmler took charge and let the Generals fight the war as they saw fit without Hitler's 'Never retreat an inch' edict. I enjoyed it and found myself looking forward to my daily commute to listen to it.

The book before that was something completely different - Oh. My. Gods. by Tera Lynn Childs. The book had sat in my wishlist for a long time as I had earlier tried a novel about mermaids by this author, but it was so bad I couldn't listen to the whole thing. But for some reason this book worked a lot better. It is a young adult book about descendents of Greek Gods with powers going to a private school on a remote Greek Island. The premise was pretty lame, but the story and the narrator sucked me in. I will admit with written books my tastes run mostly to sci-fi, but I have found I generally prefer lighter books like things in the YA category for listening to in the car.

Wow. Where did you find an audiobook version of The Witches of Karres? It has been one of my favorite books since the 1970s and I reread it every few years. Mostly I get audiobooks from audible or from the Fort Worth library and neither of them have it. Does it have a decent narrator?Duane

You're right, it wasn't a commercial copy. Since my ophthalmologist has ruled me legally blind (less than 20/200 in each eye due to macular degeneration), I'm eligible to get audiobooks from the Braille Library, which does its own recordings. They have a vast collection, though their sf selection isn't quite as vast as I'd like. (Witches is their only Schmitz title, for instance.) They've got tons of mysteries and romances. But they do have a lot of stuff that isn't on the market commercially. And it's free for those who qualify, which is a definite plus!

Finished Cro-Magnon by Brian Fagan, narrated by James Langton. A very good popular science book dealing with the early history of mankind. While it is more about the history of modern man, it also dedicates some time to the Neanderthals. I really enjoyed it, and James Langton, to whom I had never listened before, was perfect for the material.

You're right, it wasn't a commercial copy. Since my ophthalmologist has ruled me legally blind (less than 20/200 in each eye due to macular degeneration), I'm eligible to get audiobooks from the Braille Library, which does its own recordings. They have a vast collection, though their sf selection isn't quite as vast as I'd like. (Witches is their only Schmitz title, for instance.) They've got tons of mysteries and romances. But they do have a lot of stuff that isn't on the market commercially. And it's free for those who qualify, which is a definite plus!

Thanks for the info. I guess if my choice is to be legally blind or stick to reading the ebook version, I'll happily keep reading. I have noticed that audible.com has been adding a lot of older SF books recently, so perhaps they will eventually get to Witches and some of his other works.

Finished Cro-Magnon by Brian Fagan, narrated by James Langton. A very good popular science book dealing with the early history of mankind. While it is more about the history of modern man, it also dedicates some time to the Neanderthals. I really enjoyed it, and James Langton, to whom I had never listened before, was perfect for the material.

Ooooh. That would interest me. Have you listened to or read Before the Dawn, an engaging non-fiction about genetics and human history? I loved that one.

I'm listening to The Devil in Silver by Victor LaValle. It is a novel about a middle-aged, working-class guy from Brooklyn who gets committed to a mental institution. There may be something paranormal going on. Anyway, I'm really glad I chose this one to check out from the library!

You're right, it wasn't a commercial copy. Since my ophthalmologist has ruled me legally blind (less than 20/200 in each eye due to macular degeneration), I'm eligible to get audiobooks from the Braille Library, which does its own recordings. They have a vast collection, though their sf selection isn't quite as vast as I'd like. (Witches is their only Schmitz title, for instance.) They've got tons of mysteries and romances. But they do have a lot of stuff that isn't on the market commercially. And it's free for those who qualify, which is a definite plus!

I am very grateful to have the blind talking library. But like you said, the scifi is lacking. Very few complete series, and way too much Star Trek and Star Wars. I am listening to a collection of Frederick Pohl's old short stories right now. It is very enjoyable, and I love the old classics. I think it is called "Platinum Pohl" or something like that.

I am very grateful to have the blind talking library. But like you said, the scifi is lacking. Very few complete series, and way too much Star Trek and Star Wars. I am listening to a collection of Frederick Pohl's old short stories right now. It is very enjoyable, and I love the old classics. I think it is called "Platinum Pohl" or something like that.

Hi, DixieGal. I'm still able to find some great stuff there. They seem to have all the Discworld books, and some good Jack McDevitt. I just started Greg Bear's Eternity (sequel to Eon). Have you discovered Jasper Fforde yet? Funniest stuff I've read since Pratchett.